Wes Community Programs

Cards Get 4 Goals from Laurel Sticklor '09 as Team Tames ECSU in Season Opener, 13-7

Jumping out to a 3-0 lead in the opening 9:05 of the season opener vs. defending Little East champ Eastern Conn. Fri., March 7, Wesleyan never trailed on its way to a 13-7 victory. Next up for the team is another home game, the inaugural NESCAC game of 2008 vs. Amherst in a rematch of last year's NESCAC tournament first-round game won by the Lord Jeffs. Against ECSU, Sarah Orkin '09, Sophia Kim '08 and Erin McCarthy '10 spotted the Cardinals their early advantage and Wesleyan maintained between a one- and three-goal edge into intermission, ahead 7-5. Laurel Sticklor '09 (#9, photo courtesy of SteveMcLaughlinPhotography.com) netted a pair of goals in a span of 1:13 after more than eight minutes of scoreless play to start the second period. Now with a 9-5 advantage, the Cards answered each ECSU second-half goal with a pair of their own for the final margin. Sticklor tied her career-best single-game goal production with four, something she had done three times prior to this game. Kim ended the game with a hat trick while Orkin and Jess Chukwu '11 each had a pair of tallies. Enjoying a 44-18 shot advantage, Wesleyan got eight saves from its keepers, five by Abby Sedney '10 in the opening period and three by Rachel Stemerman '09 over the final 30 minutes.